Rescue harness



i Jan- 7, 1947- v. L. BEEHLER 2,413,903

" RESCUE HARNESS Filed oet. 5, 1945 OOGOOGOOOGGO INVEN i4 ATTORNEYS Patented Jan. 7, 1947 UNITED STATES PATENTl OFFICE RESCUE HARNESS Vernon L. Beehler, Lewiston, N. Y.

Application Gotober 5, 1945, Serial No. 620,433

l Claim. l

This invention relates to harness by which workmen who have become unconscious can be rescued from enclosures which they have entered through manholes.

When men work in such enclosures in which there may be noxious gases or fumes by which they may be overcome, it is customary practice for them to wear a harness from which a rope extends up through the manhole to a watcher outside. In case the workman is overcome, the watcher pulls on the rope to lift him through the manhole so that he can be revived. Heretofore, this harness generally has been fitted around the body of the man with straps passing between his legs. If he is lifted by the rescue rope, his arms will drop to his sides and he will slump forward. This makes it dicult to lift him through the manhole, because the back of his head and his shoulders reach the manhole first so that he has to be held there while his rescuer reaches down through the hole and works the victims arms up through the manhole before he can be pulled through it. Also, the buckles on the rescue harness often catch on the side of the manhole and thus add further interference to the rescue.

It is among the objects of this invention to provide rescue harness which is very simple and light in construction, which does not interfere with a workmans hands while he is working, and by which a man can be lifted by his arms.

In accordance with this invention a pair of wrist bands are strapped to the wrists of a workman before he lowers himself through a manhole into a tank or other enclosure in which there is a possibility that he may lose consciousness. Secured to each of these bands is a ring. A rescue rope extending down through the manhole is run loosely through one of the rings and its end is tied to the other ring. The workman is permitted to use his hands freely because they are not tied together. However, should the workman be overcome in the tank, the watcher outside will pull on the rope which will slide through'one of the rings and thereby draw the two rings toward each other until the victims hands are together. At the same time the rope will pull the hands and arms above the head. After the hands have come together, continued pull on the rope will lift the man, hands rst, through the manhole. In this way the man comes straight up through the manhole without slumping over. As soon as his hands reach the manhole they can be grasped bythe rescuer, which makes it easier to pull the victim through the manhole.

The preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing in which Fig. 1 is a side view of one of the wrist bands, and Fig. 2 is a fragmentary vertical section through a tank showing a man wearing my rescue harness.

Referring to the drawing, a pair of wrist bands are used, preferably one formed for the right wrist and one for the left, but as they are made in the same way only one will be described in detail. Each band may be in the form of a leather strap by which sprained wrists often are braced. The band has a wide body I long enough to wrap around the wrist and from one end of which a pair of integral straps 2 extend. The opposite end of the body is provided with a pair of buckles for receiving the straps. Behind the buckles there is a pair of slots 4 in the leather body and through which the straps are passed and then wrapped around the body once before being inserted in theibuckles. This is the usual way of fastening bracing bands on the wrist.

Beside the outer edge of the body of the band there is a D-ring 6 which is connected to the band. Preferably, a leather loop 'l extends through the ring and along opposite sides of the band to which it is stitched and riveted. If desired, this loop can be reinforced by a similar loop of metal inside of it, but in any event the loop and ring must be strong enough to support the weight of a man.

One of these leather bands is strapped around each wrist of a workman with the adjoining ring E lying along the back of his hand. A rescue rope 8 is passed loosely through one of the rings and across to the other ring to which it is securely tied as shown in Fig. 2. The workman then lowers himself through the manhole 9 into a tank I0 or the like, leaving the outer end of the rope outside where a helper or watcher stands ready to rescue the workman in case'he should be overcome or lose consciousness for any reason. Of course, the wrist bands are no inconvenience in themselves, and the rope does not interfere appreciably with the activities of the workman. If desired, the center of the length of rope between his two hands can be clipped in any suitable manner to his clothing to help keep it out of the way. Due to the fact that the rope extends loosely through one of the rings, it does not tie the hands together, so they are left vintually as free and independent of each other as if the rope were not present.

In case the workman loses consciousness and slumps down in the bottom of the tank, the helper outside pulls on the rope which slides through one of the rings and thereby draws the workmans hands together. At the same time, his hands and arms are raised above his head or extended toward the manhole as indicated in broken lines in Fig. 2. As the rescuer continues to pull on the rope the victim is raised from the oor and lifted until his hands reach the manhole where they can be grasped to lift his body from the tank. This is much easier than having to lift the man by the rope until his head and shoulders reach the manhole, and then having to pull his arms up past his head and through the hole. As the Weight of the man is suspended from the wrist bands above his head, he is lifted up to the manhole straight rather than in a seated or slumped position which makes it dinicult to reach his arms and to pull him through the manhole. Also, with his arms extending above his head his shoulders do not take up as much space as they would if his arms were hanging down at his sides as heretofore.

According to the provisions of the patent statutes, I have explained the principle and construction of my invention and have illustrated and described what I now consider to represent its best embodiment. However, I desire to have it understood that, within the scope of the appended claim, the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specically illustrated and described.

I claim:

Rescue harness for a workman below a manhole through which a rescue rope extends, said harness comprising a pair of wrist bands adapted to be Worn by the workman, a ring adjacent the outer edge of each band, and a loop member passing through each ring and secured to the side of the adjoining band to attach the ring to the band, said rings being adapted to have the rope extend slidably through one of them and tied to the other, whereby the hands of the workman are free of each other unless the rope is lpulled upwardly to draw his hands together above his head.

VERNON L. BEEHLER. 

